Data transmission apparatus and method, data receiving apparatus and method, and data transmission and reception system and method

ABSTRACT

The protection of data against illicit transfer with respect to specific data can be ensured. An integrated receiver decoder determines whether or not ATRAC (Adaptive Transform Acoustic Coding) data requiring authentication is contained in selected piece-of-music data in accordance with determination data added into transmitted data. When ATRAC data requiring authentication is contained, the integrated receiver decoder performs an authentication process between it and a storage which is a transfer destination of the ATRAC data, and performs downloading of the ATRAC data after confirming that the storage is a valid apparatus to which the downloading may be performed.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.10/899,692, filed on Jul. 27, 2004, entitled “Data TransmissionApparatus And Method, Data Receiving Apparatus And Method, And DataTransmission And Reception System And Method”, which is a division ofU.S. application Ser. No. 09/356,095, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,792,007, filedJul. 16, 1999, entitled, “Data Transmission Apparatus And Method, DataReceiving Apparatus And Method, And Data Transmission And ReceptionSystem And Method”, the entire disclosures of which are herebyincorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a data transmission apparatus andmethod, a data receiving apparatus and method, and a data transmissionand reception system and method, which are used for transmission andreception of data.

In recent years, digital signals are becoming increasingly used fortransmission and recording of audio and image data. For example, indigital satellite broadcasts, digital signals are compressed andtransmitted through the use of satellites. The digital satellitebroadcast is highly resistant to noise and fading and can transmithigher-quality signals in comparison with existing analog broadcasts.Also, recently, as typified by optical disks, magneto-optic disks, etc.,recording media capable of recording digital signals have been developedin increasing numbers. As a result, for example, it has become possibleto digitally record digital signals transmitted by the above-mentioneddigital satellite broadcast in an ordinary household. Furthermore, it isalso possible to digitally record digital signals played back from arecording medium, such as an optical disk, for digital data through abus, etc.

In the meantime, in digital signals, since signal deterioration barelyoccurs during the transmission of signals, it is possible to copy dataat a quality which is essentially equivalent to that of the original.For this reason, the risk of illicit data copying is high, andprotection of copyrights might not be ensured.

Accordingly, methods for protecting digital data have beenconventionally proposed. For example, there is a method for setting aflag, which prohibits copying of data, in data to be transmitted. Thisis such that, on the data transmission side, when data from whichcopying should be prohibited is to be transmitted, data is transmittedwith the flag which prohibits copying being set, and in the recordingapparatus on the receiving side, apparatus control is performed suchthat recording of data is prohibited according to the setting ornon-setting of the flag. In this case, for example, at the first copyingof data, the flag for copying prohibition is not set, and for example,the flag is set when a recording medium in which data is copied iscopied onto another recording medium. As a result, one-time-only copyingis possible, but copying of data is not possible from the copiedrecording medium to a second or subsequent medium.

However, in the method for setting a flag in data in a manner asdescribed above, there is a problem in that protection of data cannot besufficiently ensured unless the recording apparatus on the receivingside is designed to handle processing of the flag. That is, when thereis an apparatus which can receive data without recognizing the flag andwhich can record the data, the protection of the copyright cannot beensured. Also, if the flag is rewritten by using a computer, any numberof copies can be made.

In the meantime, in recording media for digital data, which arecommercially available, a method is adopted in which data is compressedby a predetermined compression method and is recorded. When such digitalsignals recorded in recording media are to be digitally recorded onanother recording medium through a bus, etc., usually, compressed datais once decoded into non-compressed data on the data transmission side,and the data is compressed again on the data receiving side and digitalrecording is performed. When compression of data is repeated severaltimes in this manner, deterioration of data may occur, depending uponthe performance of the apparatus which compresses the data.

However, in recent years, a method has been proposed in which receivedcompressed data is digitally recorded on a recording medium as it iswithout decoding or compressing the data. In the case of this method,since a data compression process needs not be performed on the recordingside, signal deterioration barely occurs in practice during therecording of the data. Therefore, with regard to such a method, inparticular, it is necessary to focus on protecting copyrights.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been achieved in view of such problems. Anobject of the present invention is to provide a data transmissionapparatus and method, a data receiving apparatus and method, and a datatransmission and reception system and method, which are capable ofensuring the protection of data with respect to illicit transfer ofspecific data.

In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, a signalprocessing method is provided. The methods comprises receiving amultiplexed signal; selecting a program from the received multiplexedsignal; obtaining a program map table associated with the program;obtaining packet identification information of image data associatedwith the program; obtaining packet identification information of audiodata associated with the program; obtaining packet identificationinformation of user interface data associated with the program from theprogram map table; and outputting the user interface data, the imagedata and the audio data.

In one alternative, outputting the image data includes displaying theimage data on a display. In another alternative, outputting the audiodata includes playing the audio data through an output terminal. In yetanother alternative, the program is an audio program. In this case, theimage data is preferably selected from the group consisting of jacketimage data, artist profile information and lyrics data. In a furtheralternative, the method further comprises downloading the program to anexternal storage device. In this case, the method preferably furthercomprising enabling a user to preview the program prior to thedownloading step.

In accordance with another embodiment of the present invention, a signalprocessing method is provided. The method comprises receiving amultiplexed signal at a receiving apparatus; selecting an audio programfrom among a plurality of programs in the received multiplexed signal;obtaining identification information for the selected audio program fromuser interface data in the received multiplexed signal; searching for adescriptor corresponding to the identification information from aprogram map table of an audio channel; selecting a portion of theprogram map table associated with the selected audio program;determining whether authentication is required before downloading theselected audio program to an external storage device; and downloadingthe selected audio program.

In one alternative, if it is determined that authentication is required,the method further comprises performing authentication between thereceiving apparatus and the external storage device. In anotheralternative, the selected audio program is in an ATRAC format. In afurther alternative, the selected audio program is in an MPEG format.

In the data transmission apparatus and method in accordance with thepresent invention, a plurality of types of data for transmission arecreated, and when specific data which requires, in a transmissiondestination, an authentication process for confirming the validity of anapparatus of a data transfer destination is contained in this data fortransmission, determination data used to determine that the specificdata is contained is created, and the created data is transmitted.

In the data receiving apparatus and method in accordance with thepresent invention, a plurality of types of data for transmission arereceived and, when specific data which requires, in a transmissiondestination, an authentication process for confirming the validity of anapparatus of a data transfer destination is contained in this data fortransmission, determination data used to determine that the specificdata is contained is received; and it is determined whether or not thespecific data is contained in the data for transmission on the basis ofthe received determination data.

In the data transmission and reception system and method in accordancewith the present invention, a plurality of types of data fortransmission are created and, when specific data which requires, in atransmission destination, an authentication process for confirming thevalidity of an apparatus of a data transfer destination is contained inthis data for transmission, determination data used to determine thatthe specific data is contained is created; the created data istransmitted; the transmitted data is received; and it is determinedwhether or not the specific data is contained in the data fortransmission on the basis of the determination data contained in thereceived data.

The above and further objects, aspects and novel features of theinvention will become more apparent from the following detaileddescription when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall construction of a systemof the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an illustration showing an example of a screen which isdisplayed on a television receiver in the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the construction of aground-wave station in the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an illustration showing the structure of an example of datatransmitted in the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIGS. 5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E, 5F, 5G, and 5H are illustrations showing amethod for transmitting various types of data and a method forreconstructing them in the system shown an FIG. 1.

FIGS. 6A, 6B, 6C, and 6D are illustrations showing the relationshipbetween an IRD (integrated receiver decoder) and various storage devicesin the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the construction of theIRD in the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of the construction of anIEEE1394MD in FIG. 6.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing the recording format of the IEEE1394MD inFIG. 6.

FIGS. 10A, 10B, and 10C are illustrations showing the structure ofvarious types of data transmitted in the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 11 is an illustration showing the data structure of an SMT in whichinformation for each piece of music is described.

FIG. 12 is another illustration showing the structure of various typesof data transmitted in the system shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of the IRD up to the time aGUI (graphical user interface) screen such as that shown in FIG. 2 isdisplayed in an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the operation of the IRD in a case inwhich a desired piece of music is selected by using the GUI screen inthe embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is an illustration showing an example of an authenticationprocess in the embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An embodiment of the present invention is described below in detail withreference to the drawings.

The system of the present invention is one in which a music program isbroadcast by a digital satellite broadcast, and audio data for thismusic program is streamed, making it possible for a viewer-listener totest-listen it, and furthermore, when there is a piece of music that theviewer-listener likes after test-listening, that piece of music can bepurchased easily and immediately.

FIG. 1 shows the overall construction of a music content streamingsystem as a data transmission and reception system of the presentinvention. This music content streaming system comprises a groundstation 1 for a digital satellite broadcast, which multiplexes varioussignals and transmits it to a satellite 2, an account server 5 connectedto this ground station 1, a television program material server 6, apiece-of-music material server 7, an additional audio information server8, a graphical-user-interface (hereinafter referred to as a “GUI”) dataserver 9, and a key information server 10. The satellite 2 transmitssignals transmitted from the ground station 1 toward the ground. Thesatellite 2 is equipped with a plurality of transponders. Onetransponder has transmission performance of, for example, 30 Mbps.

The music content streaming system further comprises receiving equipment3, for example, for each household, for receiving signals transmittedfrom the ground station 1 via the satellite 2. The receiving equipment 3comprises a parabolic antenna 11 for receiving signals from thesatellite 2, a low-noise block downconverter (hereinafter referred to asan “LNB”) 15 which is a converter for converting signals received bythis parabolic antenna 11 into signals of a predetermined frequency, anintegrated receiver decoder (hereinafter referred to as an “IRD”) 12 asa receiver which inputs an output signal of this LNB 15, and a storagedevice 13 and a television receiver 14, which are connected to this IRD12 The IRD 12 is connected to the account server 5 through, for example,a telephone line 4.

In the music content streaming system constructed in this manner,material for a television program broadcast from the television programmaterial server 6, material for piece-of-music data from thepiece-of-music material server 7, additional audio information from theadditional audio information server 8, and GUT data from the GUT dataserver 9 are sent to the ground station 1 for a digital satellitebroadcast.

The television program material server 6 is a server which providesmaterial for normal music broadcast programs. The materials of a musicbroadcast sent from this television program material server 6 are movingpictures and audio. In a normal music broadcast program, for example,moving pictures and audio for the promotion of a new piece-of-musicintroduction are broadcast, and the count-down of up-to-date hit songsis broadcast.

The piece-of-music material server 7 is a server which provides an audioprogram by using audio channels. The material for this audio program isaudio only. This piece-of-music material server 7 sends the materials ofthe audio programs of a plurality of audio channels to the groundstation 1. In the program broadcasts in each audio channel, the samepiece of music is repeatedly broadcast at a predetermined unit time. Therespective audio channels are independent of each other, and variousmethods of use thereof are conceivable. For example, in one audiochannel, a recommended piece of music of current Japanese pop may berepeatedly broadcast for a predetermined time; in another audio channel,a recommended piece of music of current American pop may be repeatedlybroadcast for a predetermined time; and in still another audio channel,a recommended piece of music of jazz may be repeatedly broadcast for apredetermined time. Also, a plurality of pieces of music of the sameartist may be divided between the respective audio channels and may berepeatedly broadcast.

The additional audio information server 8 provides additional audioinformation. This additional audio information is time information ofthe piece of music output from the piece-of-music material server 7,specifically, information of the total performance time of the piece ofmusic and the time elapsed after the performance of the piece of musichas started.

The GUI data server 9 provides data for forming a screen for a list pageof pieces of music to be streamed and an information page for each pieceof music, data for forming still-image data for a record jacket, datafor the lyrics of the piece of music to be streamed, data for forming ascreen for an electric program guide (hereinafter referred to as an“EPG), etc. As the details will be described later, in the system of thepresent invention, by operating GUI on the screen, the lyrics for thepiece of music to be streamed, concert information for artists, etc.,can be displayed on the screen. Also, by operating GUI on the screen, apiece of music can be selected, downloaded, reserved, etc. Data for thatpurpose is sent from the GUI data server 9. For this GUI data, forexample, an MHEG (Multimedia and Hypermedia Information Coding ExpertsGroup) method is used.

The ground station 1 multiplexes video data and audio data which arematerial of a music program broadcast from the television programmaterial server 6, audio data which is material for an audio channelfrom the piece-of-music material server 7, additional audio informationfrom the additional audio information server 8, and GUI data from theGUI data server 9, and transmits it. At this time, the video data forthe television program broadcast is compressed by, for example, an MPEG2(Moving Picture Experts Group) method, and the audio data for atelevision program broadcast is compressed by an MPEG audio method. Theaudio data of each audio channel is compressed by two different methods,for example, an MPEG audio method and an ATRAC (Adaptive TransformAcoustic Coding) method. Also, this data is encrypted, duringmultiplexing, using key information from the key information server 10.

The signal from the ground station 1 is received, for example, by theparabolic antenna 11 for the receiving equipment 3 of each household viathe satellite 2. This received signal is converted into a predeterminedfrequency by the LNB 15 and is supplied to the IRD 12.

The IRD 12 selects a signal of a predetermined channel from the receivedsignal in order to perform demodulation of video data and audio data.Also, the IRD 12 forms a list page of pieces of music to be streamed, aninformation page for each piece of music, and a screen for an EPG. Theoutput signal of the IRD 12 is supplied to the television receiver 14.

The storage device 13 is used to store downloaded audio data. Forexample, as the storage device 13, an MD (Mini Disk) recorder-player, aDAT (digital audio tape) recorder-player, a DVD (digital video disk ordigital versatile disk) recorder-player, etc., may be used. Furthermore,it is also possible to use a personal computer as the storage device 13and to store audio data on a hard disk or a CD-R (recordable compactdisk) thereof.

The IRD 12 is connected to the account server 5 via, for example, thetelephone line 4. An IC card storing various information is insertedinto the IRD 12. When the download of audio data of a piece of music isperformed, the information is stored in the IC card. The information inthis IC card is sent to the account server 5 via, for example, thetelephone line 4. The account server 5 performs appropriate accountingon the basis of this download information and charges theviewer-listener. In this manner, by performing appropriate accounting,it is possible to protect the copyright of the piece of music to bedownloaded.

In a manner as described above, in the system of the present invention,the ground station 1 multiplexes video data and audio data which arematerial for a music program broadcast from the television programmaterial server 6, audio data which is material for an audio channelfrom the piece-of-music material server 7, additional audio informationfrom the additional audio information server 8, and GUI data from theGUT data server 9, and transmits it. Then, when this broadcast isreceived by the receiving equipment 3 of each household, a music programcan be viewed, and furthermore, a GUI screen is displayed based on thereceived GUI data. By performing a necessary operation while viewingthis GUT screen, the viewer-listener can view the information page foreach piece of music and also can test-listen each piece of music.Furthermore, by performing necessary operations while viewing the GUTscreen, it is possible for the viewer-listener to download the audiodata of a desired piece of music and to store it in the storage device13.

Next, a more detailed description is given of an operation by aviewer-listener on the receiving equipment 3.

When the above-mentioned music program broadcast is received by thereceiving equipment 3 of each household, a GUI screen such as that shownin FIG. 2 is displayed on the television receiver 14. In a televisionprogram display area 21A in the upper left portion of this screen, amoving picture based on a music program provided from the televisionprogram material server 6 is displayed. In the upper right portion ofthe screen, a list 21B of the pieces of music of each channel broadcastin an audio channel is displayed. Also, in the lower left portion of thescreen, a text display area 21C and a jacket display area 21D are set.Furthermore, on the right side of the screen, a lyrics display button22, a profile display button 23, an information display button 24, aprogramming-to-record button 25, a programmed-to-record list displaybutton 26, a program history display button 27, and a download button 28are displayed.

The viewer-listener looks for a piece of music the viewer-listener isinterested in while viewing the names of the pieces of music displayedin the list 21B. Then, when the viewer-listener finds a piece of musicthe viewer-listener is interested in, after the cursor is set to thepiece of music by operating the arrow keys of the remote controller, theenter key of the remote controller attached to the IRD 12 is pressed.This makes it possible to test-listen the piece of music on which thecursor is set. That is, in each audio channel, since the same piece ofmusic is repeatedly broadcast within a predetermined unit of time,switching is made to the audio channel of the piece of music with thescreen of the television program display area 21A being maintained as itis, and the piece of music can be listened to. At this time, in thejacket display area 21D, the still image of the MD jacket of the pieceof music is displayed.

When the cursor is set to the lyrics display button 22 in this state andthe enter key is pressed (hereinafter, the operation of setting thecursor to the button and pressing the enter key is referred to as“pressing the button”), the lyrics of the piece of music are displayedin the text display area 21C at a timing synchronized with the audiodata. In a similar manner, when the profile display button 23 or theinformation display button 24 is pressed, the profile of the artist,concert information, etc., corresponding to the piece of music, aredisplayed in the text display area 21C. In a manner as described above,it is possible for the viewer-listener to be informed of what kind ofpiece of music is being streamed currently and to be informed of thedetailed information of each piece of music.

When the viewer-listener wishes to purchase the piece of music theviewer-listener has test-listened, the viewer-listener presses thedownload button 28. When the download button 28 is pressed, the audiodata of the selected piece of music is downloaded and stored in thestorage device 13. Together with the audio data of the piece of music,the lyrics data thereof, the profile information of the artist, thestill-image data of the jacket, etc., can also be downloaded. Each timea piece of music is downloaded, the information is stored in the IC cardwithin the IRD 12. The information stored in the IC card is stored bythe account server 5, for example, once a month. This makes it possibleto protect the copyright of the pieces of music to be downloaded.

Furthermore, when the viewer-listener wants to program downloads, theviewer-listener presses the programming-to-record button 25. When thisbutton 25 is pressed, the GUI screen is switched, and a list of piecesof music which can be programmed to be recorded is displayed on theentire screen. It is possible for this list to display searched piecesof music in units of one hour, one week, by genre, etc. When theviewer-listener selects, from this list, a piece of music for whichreservation of downloading is desired, the information is entered intothe IRD 12. Also, when it is desired to confirm the piece of music forwhich reservation of downloading has already been made, by pressing theprogrammed-to-record list display button 26, the list of the reservedpieces of music which are programmed to be recorded can be displayed onthe entire screen. The piece of music reserved in this manner isdownloaded by the IRD 12 when the reserved time comes and is stored inthe storage device 13.

When the viewer-listener wants to confirm the downloaded piece of music,by pressing the program history display button 27, the list of pieces ofmusic which have already been downloaded can be displayed on the entirescreen.

In a manner as described above, in the receiving equipment 3 in thesystem of the present invention, a list of pieces of music is displayedon the GUI screen of the television receiver 14. Then, when theviewer-listener selects a piece of music according to the display on theGUI screen, the viewer-listener can test-listen the piece of music, andfurther, can be informed of the lyrics of the piece of music, theprofile of the artist, etc. In addition, the viewer-listener candownload a piece of music, make a reservation therefor, and display thehistory of downloading and the reserved pieces-of-music list, etc., byusing the GUI screen.

As has been described up to this point, in the music content streamingsystem of the present invention, a music broadcast program is streamed,and audio data of a piece of music is streamed by using a plurality ofaudio channels. Then, a desired piece of music can be searched for usinga list of pieces of music being streamed, etc., and the audio data canbe stored easily in the storage device 13. Such a system is describedbelow in more detail.

FIG. 3 shows an example of the construction of the ground station 1 inthe music content streaming system of the present invention.

This ground station 1 comprises a television program material entrysystem 31 for entering material data from the television programmaterial server 6, a piece-of-music material entry system 32 forentering audio data from the piece of music material server 7, anadditional audio information entry system 33 for entering additionalaudio information from the additional audio information server 8, and amaterial-for-GUI entry system 34 for entering GUI data from the GUI dataserver 9.

The ground station 1 further comprises an AV (Audio Visual) server 35for holding material data from the television program material entrysystem 31, and a television program sending system 39 for compressingmaterial data held by this AV server 35, forming it into packets, andsending them.

The ground station 1 further comprises an MPEG audio encoder 36A forencoding audio data from the piece-of-music material entry system 32 byan MPEG audio method, an MPEG audio server 40A for holding MPEG audiodata which is obtained as a result of being encoded by this MPEG audioencoder 36A, and an MPEG audio sending system 43A for forming the MPEGaudio data held by this MPEG audio server 40A into packets and forsending them.

The ground station 1 further comprises an ATRAC encoder 3613 forencoding audio data from the piece-of-music material entry system 32 byan ATRAC method, an ATRAC audio server 40B for holding ATRAC dataobtained as a result of being encoded by this ATRAC encoder 36B, and anATRAC audio sending system 43B for forming the ATRAC data held by thisATRAC audio server 40B into packets and for sending them.

The ground station 1 further comprises an additional audio informationdatabase 37 for holding additional audio information from the additionalaudio information entry system 33, and an additional audio informationsending system 41 for forming the additional audio information held bythis additional audio information database 37 into packets and forsending them.

The ground station 1 further comprises a GUI material database 38 forholding GUI data from the material-for-GUI entry system 34, and a GUIauthoring system 42 for processing GUI data held by this GUI materialdatabase 38, for forming it into packets, and for sending them.

The ground station 1 further comprises a multiplexer 44 for time-axismultiplexing (time-division multiplexing) each data and information fromeach of the systems 39, 43A, 43B, 41, and 42 and for encrypting it byusing key information from the key information server 10 (FIG. 1), and aradio-wave sending system 45 for performing a predetermined process onthe output of this multiplexer 44 and then for transmitting it towardthe satellite 2 from an antenna (not shown).

In the ground station 1 constructed in this manner, the material datafrom the television program material entry system 31 is entered into theAV server 35. This material data is video data and audio data. Thematerial data entered into the AV server 35 is sent to the televisionprogram sending system 39 whereby the video data is compressed by, forexample, an MPEG2 method, and the audio data is compressed by, forexample, an MPEG audio method, each being formed into packets. Theoutput of the television program sending system 39 is sent to themultiplexer 44.

Furthermore, the audio data from the piece-of-music material entrysystem 32 is supplied to the MPEG audio encoder 36A and the ATRACencoder 363 whereby the audio data are each encoded, after which thedata is entered into each of the MPEG audio server 40A and the ATRACaudio server 40B. The MPEG audio data entered into the MPEG audio server40A is sent to the MPEG audio sending system 43A whereby it is formedinto packets, after which these packets are sent to the multiplexer 44.The ATRAC data entered into the ATRAC audio server 40B is sent, as4×-speed ATRAC data, to the ATRAC audio sending system 43B whereby it isformed into packets, after which these packets are sent to themultiplexer 44.

Furthermore, the additional audio information from the additional audioinformation entry system 33 is entered into the additional audioinformation database 37. The additional audio information entered intothe additional audio information database 37 is sent to the additionalaudio information sending system 41 whereby the additional audioinformation is formed into packets, after which these packets are sentto the multiplexer 44.

Furthermore, the GUT data from the material-for-GUI entry system 34 isentered into the GUT material database 38. The GUI data entered into theGUT material database 38 is sent to the GUT authoring system 42 wherebydata for a screen for GUT is processed and formed into packets, afterwhich these packets are sent to the multiplexer 44. Here, examples ofthe GUI data include the still-image information of the jacket, thelyrics information of the piece of music, the concert information of theartist, etc. Here, the still-image information is image data of 640 (480pixels, which is compressed by, for example, a JPEG (Joint PhotographicCoding Experts Group) method, and the lyrics information is text data,for example, up to 800 characters, the information being formed intopackets.

In the multiplexer 44, video packets and audio packets from thetelevision program sending system 39, audio packets from the MPEG audiosending system 43A, 4×-speed audio packets from the ATRAC audio sendingsystem 43B, additional audio information packets from the additionalaudio information sending system 41, and GUI data packets from the GUIauthoring system 42 are time-axis multiplexed and encrypted using keyinformation from the key information server 10 (FIG. 1).

The output of the multiplexer 44 is sent to the radio-wave sendingsystem 45 whereby it is subjected to a process, such as addition of anerror-correction code, modulation, frequency conversion, etc., afterwhich it is transmitted toward the satellite 2 from the antenna (notshown).

FIG. 4 shows an example of data transmitted from the ground station 1.Each data shown in this figure is time-axis multiplexed in practice. Asshown in FIG. 4, the duration from time t1 to time t2 is one event, andthe duration from time t2 is the next event. The event is a unit inwhich the line-up of the pieces of music is changed, and it is commonpractice for a unit to be 30 minutes or one hour. For example, it isconceivable that the pieces of music from the 20th place to the 11thplace of the top 20 of the current hit songs are broadcast in an earlierevent, and the pieces of music from the 10th place to the first placeare broadcast in a later event.

As shown in FIG. 4, in the event from time t1 to time t2, a musicprogram having a predetermined content A1 is broadcast in the normalprogram broadcast for moving pictures. Also, in the event starting fromtime t2, a music program having a predetermined content A2 is broadcast.Moving pictures and audio are broadcast in this normal music program.

For the audio channels, for example, ten channels from channel CH1 toCH10 are prepared. At this time, in each of the audio channels CH1, CH2,CH3, . . . CH10, the same piece of music is repeatedly transmittedduring one event. That is, in the event from time t1 to time t2, in theaudio channel CH1, a piece of music B1 is repeatedly transmitted, in theaudio channel CH2, a piece of music C1 is repeatedly transmitted, andhereafter, in a similar manner, in the audio channel CH10, a piece ofmusic K1 is repeatedly transmitted. In the event starting from time t2,in the audio channel CH1, a piece of music B2 is repeatedly transmitted,in the audio channel CH2, a piece of music C2 is repeatedly transmitted,and hereafter, in a similar manner, in the audio channel CH10, a pieceof music K2 is repeatedly transmitted. This is common to the MPEG audiochannel and the 4×-speed ATRAC audio channel.

In other words, in FIG. 4, those in which the numerals within theparentheses, which are the channel numbers of the MPEG audio channel andthe 4×-speed ATRAC audio channel, are related to the same piece ofmusic. Also, the numeral within the parenthesis, which is the channelnumber of the additional audio information, is additional audioinformation added to the audio data having the same channel number.Furthermore, the still-image data and the text data transmitted as GUIdata are also formed for each channel.

FIGS. 5A, 5B, 5C, 5D, 5E, 5F, 5G, and 5H show a method for transmittingvarious types of data such as those shown in FIG. 4 and a method forreconstructing them. As shown in FIGS. 5A to 5D, various types of dataare time-division multiplexed by transport packets of MPEG2 and aretransmitted. Each transport packet has a header, and informationindicating the type of packet is described within this header. Withinthe IRD 12, using information indicating the type of packet within theheader of each packet, each data is reconstructed, as shown in FIGS. 5Eto 5H.

Next, a description is given of the receiving equipment 3 in eachhousehold. As shown in FIG. 1, as receiving equipment of each household,the parabolic antenna 11, the IRD 12, the storage device 13, and thetelevision receiver 14 are prepared.

Here, it is assumed that, as shown in FIG. 6A, the IRD 12 comprises ananalog audio output terminal Aout, a digital audio output terminal Doutof IEC958, etc., which sends audio data through an optical cable, and adigital interface terminal Dif of IEEE1394, etc. Therefore, as thestorage device 13, as shown in FIG. 6B, a storage device comprising onlyan analog audio input terminal Ain may be connected; as shown in FIG.6C, a storage device comprising a PCM audio input terminal Din ofIEC958, etc., may be connected; and as shown in FIG. 6D, a storagedevice comprising a two-way digital interface terminal Dif of IEEE1394,etc., may be connected.

As shown in FIG. 6B, when a storage device 13A comprising only theanalog audio input terminal Ain is used as a storage device, the analogoutput terminal Aout of the IRD 12 is connected to the analog inputterminal Ain of the storage device 13A through an analog cable 16A.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6C, when a storage device 13B comprisingthe PCM audio input terminal Din of IEC958, etc., is used as a storagedevice, the section between the digital audio output terminal Dout ofthe IRD 12 and the digital input terminal Din of the storage device 13Bis connected by, for example, an optical cable 16B of IEC958.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6D, when a storage device 13C comprisingthe two-way digital interface terminal Dif of IEEE1394, etc., is used asa storage device, the section between the digital interface terminal Difof the IRD 12 and the digital interface terminal Dif of the storagedevice 13C is connected by, for example, a digital interface cable(hereinafter referred to as an “IEEE1394 bus”) 16C of IEEE1394.

As shown in FIG. 6B, when a storage device which does not comprise adigital input terminal is used as a storage device, the downloaded MPEGaudio data is subjected to a decoding process of MPEG within the IRD 12,is further converted from digital to analog form, and is output from theanalog audio output terminal Aout. Then, the data is sent to the storagedevice 13A from the IRD 12 through the analog cable 16A. In this case,the construction may also be formed in such a way that a control signalis exchanged between the IRD 12 and the storage device 13A usingwireless communication via infrared rays or using wired communicationthrough cables, and confirmation of the connection relationship andconfirmation of the downloading operation are performed.

As shown in FIG. 6C, when the storage device 13B comprising the PCMaudio input terminal Din is used as a storage device, the downloadedMPEG audio data is subjected to a decoding process of MPEG within theIRD 12 and is output as PCM audio data from the IRD 12. Then, the datais sent from the IRD 12 to the storage device 13B through, for example,the optical cable 16B of IEC958. Also in this case, the construction mayalso be formed in such a way that a control signal is exchanged betweenthe IRD 12 and the storage device 13A using wireless communication viainfrared rays or using wired communication through cables, andconfirmation of the connection relationship and confirmation of thedownloading operation are performed.

As a specific example in the case shown in FIG. 6D, when an MDrecorder-player (hereinafter referred to as an “IEEE1394MD”) comprisingthe two-way digital interface terminal Dif of IEEE1394, etc., is used asthe storage device 13C, the downloaded 4×-speed ATRAC data is sent fromthe IRD 12 as it is to the storage device 13C through the IEEE1394 bus16C. Also, the IEEE1394MD as the storage device 13C can store, togetherwith the audio data of the piece of music selected by the IRD 12, textdata, such as the jacket data, the lyrics data, etc. In the followingdescription, the IEEE1394MD as the storage device 13C is also given thereference numeral 13C.

In a manner as described above, as an apparatus used as the storagedevice 13, there can be mentioned three types of apparatuses:apparatuses for analog input, apparatuses which input PCM audio data,and apparatuses which input ATRAC data.

FIG. 7 shows an example of the construction of the IRD 12. This IRD 12comprises, as external terminals or interfaces, an input terminal T1, ananalog video output terminal T2, analog audio output terminals T3 andT4, an optical digital output interface 59, an IEEE1394 interface 60, aman-machine interface 61, an IC card slot 62, and a modem 63. Also, theIRD 12 comprises a controlling CPU (central processing unit) 58.

The input terminal T1 is a terminal to which is input a received signalwhich has been converted into a predetermined frequency by the LNB 25.The analog video output terminal T2 is a terminal which supplies ananalog video signal to the television receiver 14. The analog audiooutput terminal T3 is a terminal which supplies an analog audio signalto the television receiver 14. The analog audio output terminal T4 is aterminal which supplies an analog audio signal to a storage device foranalog input. The optical digital output interface 59, which complieswith the IEC958, sends PCM audio data to the optical cable 16B. TheIEEE1394 interface 60 sends video data, audio data, and various types ofcommands, etc., to the IEEE1394 bus 16C. The man-machine interface 61sends an input from the remote controller by the user to the controllingCPU 58. The IC card 65 is inserted into the IC card slot 62. The modem63 is connected to the account server 5 over the telephone line 4.

The IRD 12 further comprises a tuner 51 connected to the input terminalT1, a descrambler 52 provided at a stage subsequent to this tuner 51, atransport IC (integrated circuit) 53 provided at a stage subsequent tothis descrambler 52, an MPEG audio decoder 54 and an MPEG video decoder55 which are provided at a stage subsequent to this transport IC 53, adigital-analog converter 56 provided at a stage subsequent to the MPEGaudio decoder 54, a one-input two-output switch SW1 provided at a stagesubsequent to this digital-analog converter 56, and an NTSC (NationalTelevision System Committee) conversion block 57 provided at a stagesubsequent to the MPEG video decoder 55.

The output end of the NTSC conversion block 57 is connected to theanalog video output terminal T2. Each output end of the switch SW1 isconnected to the analog audio output terminals T3 and T4, respectivelyAlso, the MPEG audio decoder 54 is connected to the optical digitaloutput interface 59. Also, the transport IC 53 is connected to theIEEE1394 interface 60.

The tuner 51 selects a signal of a predetermined receiving frequencyfrom among the received signals supplied from the analog terminal T1 inaccordance with a setting signal from the controlling CPU 58, furtherperforms a demodulation process and an error-correction process thereon,and outputs an MPEG transport stream. The descrambler 52 receives theMPEG transport stream from the tuner 51, receives key data fordescrambling stored in the IC card 65 via the IC card slot 62 and thecontrolling CPU 58, and performs descrambling using this key data. Thetransport IC 53 receives a command input from the remote controller 64by the user via the man-machine interface 61 and the controlling CPU 58,and extracts MPEG video data and MPEG audio data of a desired televisionprogram from the transport stream. The MPEG video decoder 55 convertsthe MPEG video data supplied from the transport IC 53 into the videodata before the data is compressed. The MPEG audio decoder 54 convertsthe MPEG audio data supplied from the transport IC 53 into the audiodata (PCM audio data) before the data is compressed. The digital-analogconverter 56 converts the audio data supplied from an MPEG audio decoder54A into analog audio signals. The switch SW1 selectively supplies theanalog audio signal supplied from the digital-analog converter 56 to theanalog audio output terminals T3 and T4.

The controlling CPU 58 performs the processing of the entire IRD 12.Also, the controlling CPU 58 receives a command input to the controllingCPU 58 by the user using the remote controller 64 via the man-machineinterface 61. The modem 63 is connected to the controlling CPU 58.Information required for accounting is stored in the IC card 65. Theinformation in this IC card 65 is sent to the account server 5 (FIG. 1)using the modem 63 via the telephone line 4

Furthermore, the transport IC 53 inputs additional audio information andGUI data shown in FIG. 4 from the transport stream and sends them to thecontrolling CPU 58. Based on this data, the controlling CPU 58 forms ascreen for a list page, a screen for an information page of each pieceof music, screen data for an EPG, etc. The screen data formed in thismanner is written into a predetermined area of a buffer memory withinthe MPEG video decoder 55. As a result, as shown in FIG. 2, a screen fora list page of pieces of music being broadcast and an information pageof each piece of music or a screen for an EPG can be displayed in aspecified area on the screen.

Next, a description is given of the operation of the IRD 12 shown inFIG. 7.

In the IRD 12 shown in FIG. 7, when the channel of the music contentstreaming system which has been described thus far is selected by theuser, a GUI screen such as that shown in FIG. 2 is displayed on thescreen of the television receiver 14.

At this time, the received signal input to the terminal T1 is suppliedto the tuner 51. In the tuner 51, a signal of a predetermined receivingfrequency is selected from the received signals in accordance with thesetting signal from the controlling CPU 58, and further, a demodulationprocess and an error-correction process are performed thereon, and anMPEG transport stream is output.

The output of the tuner 51 is supplied to the descrambler 52. In thedescrambler 52, key data used for descrambling stored in the IC card 65is input via the IC card slot 62 and the controlling CPU 58, anddescrambling of the MPEG transport stream is performed by using this keydata. The descrambled MPEG transport stream is sent to the transport IC53.

A command input from the remote controller 64 by the user is input tothe transport IC 53 via the man-machine interface 61 and the controllingCPU 58. The transport IC 53 extracts, in accordance with the command,the MPEG video data and the MPEG audio data of a desired televisionprogram from the transport stream, and sends them to the MPEG videodecoder 55 and the MPEG audio decoder 54, respectively.

The MPEG video data sent to the MPEG video decoder 55 is convertedhereby into the video data before the data is compressed; next, it isconverted into a composite video signal by the NTSC conversion block 57,after which it is output from the analog video output terminal T2 to thetelevision receiver 14. The MPEG audio data sent to the MPEG audiodecoder 54 is converted hereby into the audio data before the data iscompressed; next, it is converted into an analog audio signal by thedigital-analog converter 56, after which it is output from the analogaudio output terminal T3 to the television receiver 14.

In a case in which a piece of music is selected from the list 21B of thepieces of music on the GUI screen shown in FIG. 2 and the audio data ofthe piece of music is to be test-listened, the MPEG audio data isextracted in the transport IC 53, this MPEG audio data is decoded by theMPEG audio decoder 54, and it is converted from digital to analog formby the digital-analog converter 56, after which it is passed through theswitch SW1 and is output from the analog audio output terminal T3 to thetelevision receiver 14.

Furthermore, when the download button 28 is pressed on the GUI screenshown in FIG. 2 in order to download the audio data, the audio data isextracted in the transport IC 53, and the audio data is output from oneof the analog audio output terminal T4, the optical digital outputinterface 59, and the IEEE1394 interface 60.

Here, as shown in FIG. 6D, in a case in which the IEEE1394MD 13C isconnected to the IEEE1394 interface 60 (the digital interface terminalDif), 4×-speed ATRAC data is extracted in the transport IC 53 and issent to the IEEE1394MD 13C via the IEEE1394 interface 60. Also, at thistime, jacket data which is compressed by the JPEG method is extracted inthe transport IC 53 and is sent to the IEEE1394MD 13C via the IEEE1394interface 60. Furthermore, at this time, text data, such as the lyricsor the profile of the artist, is extracted in the transport IC 53 and issent to the IEEE1394MD 13C via the IEEE1394 interface 60.

In a case in which a storage device 13B (FIG. 6C) which is not providedwith IEEE1394 interface, is connected to the optical digital outputinterface 59, MPEG audio data is extracted in the transport IC 53, andis decoded by the MPEG audio decoder 54, after which the PCM audio datais sent to the storage device 13B via the optical digital outputinterface 59 (digital output terminal Dout).

In a case in which a storage device 13A (FIG. 6A) which can input onlyanalog audio is connected to the analog audio output terminal T4, MPEGaudio data is extracted in the transport IC 53, is decoded by the MPEGaudio decoder 54, and is further converted from digital to analog formby the digital-analog converter 56, after which it is passed through theswitch SW1 and is sent to the storage device 13A from the analog audiooutput terminal T4 (audio output terminal Aout).

In this embodiment, in a case in which ATRAC data as specific data iscontained in the piece-of-music data and this ATRAC data is transferredto another apparatus, the IRD 12 performs an authentication process forconfirming the validity of the apparatus of the transfer destination andsends the data to the apparatus of the transfer destination only whenthe validity is confirmed. The apparatus having the validity as atransfer destination of the ATRAC data is an apparatus for whichtransfer of data is permitted in advance, and in this embodiment, theIEEE1394MD 13C corresponds thereto.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing an example of the construction of theIEEE1394MD 13C. This IEEE1394MD 13C comprises an IEEE1394 interface 71,an optical digital input interface 72, an analog audio input terminalT12, and an analog audio output terminal T13. The IEEE1394 interface 71is directly connected to a recording and playback section 75 andfurther, is connected to the recording and playback section 75 via anATRAC encoder 74. The optical digital input interface 72 is connected tothe recording and playback section 75 via the ATRAC encoder 74. Theanalog audio input terminal T12 is connected to the ATRAC encoder 74 viaan analog-digital converter 73. The analog audio output terminal T13 isconnected to the recording and playback section 75 via a digital-analogconverter 78 and an ATRAC decoder 77. A disk 76 is set in the recordingand playback section 75, and the recording and playback section 75performs recording into and playback from this disk 76.

Although not shown here, this IEEE1394MD 13C is provided with acontrolling CPU for performing overall control and a man-machineinterface.

Next, the operation of this IEEE1394MD 13C during recording isdescribed.

In a case in which the IEEE1394 interface 71 is connected to theIEEE1394 interface 60 of the IRD 12 shown in FIG. 7, the audio data ofthe piece of music, text data, such as the lyrics, and still-image data,such as the jacket, which are sent from the IEEE1394 interface 60, areinput from the IEEE1394 interface 71, and the audio data is recordedinto the disk 76 as it is by the recording and playback section 75. Aswill be described later, at this time, each of the data is recorded onthe disk 76 in accordance with an expansion MD format.

In a case in which PCM audio data is input to the optical digital inputinterface 72 from an external source, the input PCM audio data isencoded by the ATRAC encoder 74, after which it is recorded on the disk76 by the recording and playback section 75.

In a case in which an analog audio signal is input to the analog audioinput terminal T12 from the external source, the input analog audiosignal is converted from analog to digital form by the analog-digitalconverter 73 and is encoded by the ATRAC encoder 74, after which it isrecorded on the disk 76 by the recording and playback section 75.

In other words, in this IEEE1394MD 13C, only in a case in which thesection between it and the IRD 12 is connected by the IEEE1394 bus,together with the audio data of the piece of music, the lyrics datathereof, the still-image data of the jacket, etc., are recorded, and inthe case of the connection by optical digital interface or in the caseof analog audio input, only the audio data is recorded.

Furthermore, in the IEEE1394MD 13C, it is possible during playback tooutput a playback signal from the IEEE1394 interface 71 or the analogaudio output terminal T13. Then, in a case in which, together with theaudio data of the piece of music, the lyrics data thereof, the jacketdata, etc , are recorded on the disk 76, when the playback signal isoutput from the IEEE1394 interface 71, the piece-of-music data can beoutput to an audio apparatus (amplifier, etc.) which conforms to theIEEE1394, and further, the lyrics data, the jacket data, etc., can bedisplayed on a display which conforms to the IEEE1394 and can be printedby a printer which conforms to the IEEE1394.

In a manner as described above, it is possible for the IEEE1394MD 13C ofthe present invention to record and play back the audio data of thepiece of music, the lyrics data thereof, the jacket data, etc.

FIG. 9 shows the expansion MD format which makes it possible to recordand play back the audio data of a piece of music, the lyrics datathereof, the jacket data thereof, etc. As shown in this figure, theaudio data of the piece of music is recorded in a main data area by anATRAC method. This is the same as the currently used MD format. In theexpansion MD format, furthermore, the above-mentioned jacket data, thelyrics data, etc, are recorded in an auxiliary data (Aux Data) area of2.8 Mbytes. Use of such an expansion MD format makes it possible torecord and play back the audio data of a piece of music and further, thelyrics data, the jacket data, etc. Also, it is possible to maintaincompatibility with the current MD format.

Next, referring to FIGS. 10A, 10B, and 10C, a description is given ofthe structure of various types of data transmitted in this embodiment.

In this embodiment, various types of data are transmitted by transportpackets in an MPEG transport stream from the ground station 1 to thereceiving equipment 3. FIG. 10B shows the data structure of thistransport packet. The transport packet has a transport port header 123in which control information is stored, and a payload 124 in whichinformation to be transmitted is stored. The payload 124 in thetransport packet is formed such that a packetized elementary stream(hereinafter referred to as a “PES”) is divided for each predetermineddata length. FIG. 10A shows the data structure of the PES packet whichis a packet in this PES. The PES packet has a PES header 121 in whichcontrol information is stored, and a data part 122.

As shown in FIG. 10C, in the transport header 123 of the transportpacket, packet identification information (hereinafter referred to as a“PID”) indicating the type of packet is described.

Next, a description is given of accompanying information thataccompanies a piece of music which can be downloaded in this embodiment.

In this embodiment, examples of the accompanying information include thelyrics data of a piece of music, the explanation data of the piece ofmusic, the explanation data of the artist, data of images (images, suchas the jacket photograph of the album in which the piece of music isrecorded, and photographs of the artist, animation, promotional images,etc.) related to the piece of music, etc. Of these, the lyrics data ofthe piece of music, the explanation data of the piece of music, and theexplanation data of the artist are text data, and the data of the imagesrelated to the piece of music is image data compressed by the JPEGmethod. This accompanying information is transmitted from the groundstation 1 to the receiving equipment 3 by the accompanying data as apart of the GUI data.

The accompanying information is grouped into one file, for example, foreach piece of music and for each type of data. In this embodiment, thisfile is called a “piece-of-music accompanying information file”.

Next, a description is given of a scheme for obtaining correspondenceamong the selected piece of music, the additional audio information, andaccompanying information such as the lyrics data. The information usedto make it possible to select a piece of music by operating GUI on thescreen is provided by the GUI data. This GUI data contains a pluralityof types of data: the lyrics data of the piece of music, the explanationdata of the piece of music, the explanation data of the artist, theimage data related to the piece of music, etc. This plurality of typesof data each contain data for each piece of music. A subprogram tag(hereinafter referred to as a “SPT”) which is identification informationof a corresponding piece of music is added to each data for each pieceof music, the data for each piece of music being identified by this STP.Therefore, in the IRD 12, when a particular piece of music is selectedby operating GUI on the screen, an SPT corresponding to the piece ofmusic is obtained. Then, the IRD 12 extracts the data, the additionalaudio information, and the accompanying information of the selectedpiece of music from among the received data in accordance with this SPT.

A description is given first of a method for extracting the data and theadditional audio information of the selected piece of music inaccordance with the SPT. In the transport stream, in order to make itpossible to take out a target channel (program) from among a pluralityof channels (programs), a program association table (hereinafterreferred to as a “PAT”) and a program map table (hereinafter referred toas a “PMT”) are multiplexed together.

A PID corresponding to the PMT for each channel is described in the PAT.The PID of the transport packet containing the PAT is set to “0”. In thePMT, the PID for each type of data, such as the video data, the audiodata, etc., in the channel thereof is described.

Therefore, it is possible for the IRD 12 to obtain a PAT by extractingthe transport packet whose PID is “0”. Furthermore, it is possible forthe IRD 12 to obtain a PMT for each channel by extracting the transportpacket of the PID corresponding to the PMT for each channel described inthe PAT. The IRD 12 can be informed of the PID for each type of data ineach channel by this PMT for each channel. In this manner, the IRD 12can extract the video data and the audio data in the selected channel asa result of being informed of the PID for each type of data in theselected channel and by extracting the transport packets of those PIDs.

Here, a channel of a music broadcast which is capable of downloadingpiece-of-music data described up to this point is called a “channel ofEMD (Electric Music Download)”. In this embodiment, with regard to thischannel of EMD, in addition to the PMT, a sub-PMT (hereinafter referredto as an “SMT”) is defined. This SMT is prepared for each piece of musicwhich can be downloaded.

FIG. 11 is an illustration showing the detailed data structure of theSMT. In the SMT, an SPT which is identification information for eachpiece of music, a PID for each of MPEG audio data in the piece of music,ATRAC data, and additional audio data are described. Also, a bit(hereinafter referred to as a “BIT1) as determination data used fordetermining that specific data requiring authentication is contained isadded before the PID of the ATRAC data. In the BIT1, a flag is set(BIT1=“1”), for example, when the ATRAC data indicated by the PID isspecific data requiring authentication.

Furthermore, in this embodiment, in addition to the PID for each type ofdata, such as video data, audio data, GUI data, etc., a PID of the SMTfor each piece of music which can be downloaded is described in the PMTof the channel of the END. In this embodiment, one which describes thisPID of the SMT for each piece of music which can be downloaded is calleda “linkage descriptor”.

The above-described data, such as the PAT, the PMT, the SMT, etc., arecreated by control means (not shown) in the ground station 1.

FIG. 12 conceptually shows the relationship among the above-mentionedPAT, the PMT, and the SMT. As shown in this figure, a PID correspondingto the PMT for each channel is described in the PAT. In the exampleshown in FIG. 12, it is assumed that the PIDs of the PMTs of fourchannels, that is, PMT1 to PMT4, are described in the PAT. Here, thePMT4 is assumed to be a PMT of the channel of the EMD. This PMT4contains a plurality of linkage descriptors which describe the PID ofthe SMT for each piece of music which can be downloaded. In the exampleshown in FIG. 12, it is assumed that there are ten pieces of music whichcan be downloaded, and for the SMT, there are ten of SMT1 to SMT10. AnSPT is added to each of the linkage descriptor and the SMT for eachpiece of music, and the linkage descriptor and the SMT for each piece ofmusic can be identified by this SPT.

By such a scheme for the PAT, the PMT, and the SMT, the IRD 12 isinformed of the PID of the SMT of the piece of music selected from thePMT of the channel of the EMD in accordance with the SPT of the selectedpiece of music when a desired piece of music is selected from among aplurality of pieces of music which can be downloaded when a channel ofan EMD is selected, and is further informed of the PID for each of theMPEG audio data, the ATRAC data, and the additional audio data in thepiece of music in accordance with the SMT corresponding to the PID byextracting the transport packet of those PIDs, thereby making itpossible to extract the MPEG audio data, the ATRAC data, and theadditional audio data in the selected channel.

Furthermore, when a desired piece of music is selected from among aplurality of pieces of music which can be downloaded when the channel ofthe EMD is selected, the IRD 12 extracts the accompanying information ofthe selected piece of music from the GUI data in accordance with the SPTof the selected piece of music.

In a manner as described above, the selected piece of music, theadditional audio information, and the accompanying information, such asthe lyrics data, are made to correspond to each other in accordance withthe SPT.

Next, referring to the flowcharts of FIGS. 13 and 14, a description isgiven of the operation of downloading piece-of-music data in thisembodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing the operation of the IRD 12 up to thetime a GUI screen such as that shown in FIG. 2 is displayed when the ENDchannel is selected. In this operation, when the EMD channel is selectedin the IRD 12 (step S101), the IRD 12 obtains the PMT of the END channel(step S102). Next, the IRD 12 obtains the PID of the main video datawhich is the video data of the music broadcast supplied from thetelevision program material server 6 in FIG. 1, and the PID of the mainaudio data which is the audio data of the music broadcast (step S103).Next, the IRD 12 obtains the PID of the GUI data from the PMT of the EMDchannel (step S104). Next, the IRD 12 extracts the transport packethaving the PID of the GUI data in order to extract the GUI data from thetransport stream, displays the GUI screen such as that shown in FIG. 2in accordance with this GUI data, and extracts the main video data andthe main audio data in accordance with the PID of the main video dataand the PID of the main audio data in order to play back a music program(step S105), thereby terminating the operation up to the displaying ofthe GUI screen.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the operation of the IRD 12 in a case inwhich a desired piece of music is selected from the list 21B of thepieces of music by using the GUI screen displayed in the above-describedway. In this operation, initially, the IRD 12 obtains the SPT of theselected piece of music from the GUI data (step S201). Next, the IRD 12searches for a linkage descriptor corresponding to the SPT from the PMTof the EMD channel and obtains the PID of the SMT of the selected pieceof music (step S202). Next, the IRD 12 extracts the transport packethaving the PID of the SMT of the selected piece of music in order toobtain the SMT of the selected piece of music (step S203).

Next, the IRD 12 determines whether or not the flag of the BIT1 (FIG.11) described in the SMT has been set in order to determine whether ornot ATRAC data requiring authentication is contained in thepiece-of-music data (step S204). When it is determined here that theflag of the BIT1 has not been set (N), the IRD 12 extracts the MPEGaudio data in accordance with this PID, obtains the PID of the MPEGaudio data from the SMT (step S209), and decodes the MPEG audio data(step S210). This decoded audio data is output from the optical digitaloutput interface 59 or from the analog audio output terminals T3 and T4.

Furthermore, when the flag of the BIT1 has been set (Y), the IRD 12performs an authentication process between it and the apparatus(usually, the IEEE1394MD 13C) of the transfer destination of the ATRACdata, and determines whether or not the apparatus of the transferdestination is a valid apparatus to which downloading may be performed(step S205). Here, when the apparatus is not determined to be a validapparatus (N), the IRD 12 proceeds to the process of step S209. Also,when the apparatus is determined to be a valid apparatus (Y) the IRD 12further determines whether or not a selection for instructing that theATRAC data be downloaded has been made by the user (step S206).

When a selection for instructing that the ATRAC data be downloaded hasnot been made (N), the IRD 12 proceeds to the process of step S209.Also, when a selection for instructing that the ATRAC data be downloadedhas been made (Y), the IRD 12 extracts the PID of the ATRAC data fromthe SMT (step S207), extracts the ATRAC data in accordance with thisPID, and starts downloading the ATRAC data (step S208).

Next, a description is given of an authentication process performedbetween the IRD 12 and the apparatus of the transfer destination for theATRAC data in this embodiment. FIG. 15 is an illustration showing anexample of an authentication process. As a method for performingauthentication in this embodiment, for example, a secret-key encryptionmethod may be used.

In the download of the ATRAC data, digital recording of such a highquality as that in which deterioration of sound quality barely occurs ispossible in practice, and the protection of data is deemed to beparticularly important. Therefore, in this embodiment, with thedownloading of the ATRAC data, for example, an authentication processsuch as that described below is performed. In the following, adescription is given by assuming the apparatus of the transferdestination to be the storage device 13. As shown in FIG. 15, initially,the IRD 12 transmits a command S1 requesting authentication to thestorage device 13. Receiving the command S1 requesting authentication,the storage device 13 returns a command S2 as specific authenticationinformation possessed by itself to the IRD 12. The IRD 12 determineswhether or not the storage device 13 is a valid apparatus to which thedata may be transferred in accordance with the command S2 from thestorage device 13. The apparatus having the validity as a transferdestination is an apparatus to which the transfer of the ATRAC data ispermitted, and in this embodiment, the IEEE1394MD 13C correspondsthereto. When the IRD 12 confirms that the authentication information iscorrect information which is set up in advance and determines that thestorage device 13 is a valid apparatus, the IRD 12 transmits keyinformation S3, then encrypts the ATRAC data in accordance with thistransmitted key information S3, and transmits data DA to the storagedevice 13. The storage device 13 decrypts the encrypted data DA inaccordance with the key information S3 transmitted in advance from theIRD 12, and records the ATRAC data.

With regard to this authentication, in addition to the authenticationmethod described in, for example, Japanese Unexamined Patent PublicationNo. 8-46948, a known authentication method which is in common use may beused, and any method may be used.

As has been described up to this point, according to this embodiment,determination data used for determining that specific data (ATRAC data)requiring authentication is contained is added into the data structureof the SMT in which information for each piece of music is described andis transmitted, and on the receiving side, it is determined whether thespecific data is contained in accordance with the determination data,and the IRD 12 performs a download process after performing anauthentication process on the apparatus of the data transferdestination. This makes it possible to ensure the protection of the datawith respect to the illicit transfer of the specific data.

Although in the above-described embodiment, determination data used fordetermining that specific data requiring authentication is contained isadded before the PID of the ATRAC data described within the SMT, thisdetermination data may be added into another data structure. In thiscase, it is preferable that this determination data be added to theplace indicating that it is data for each piece of music in the datastructure. In a case in which an EMD channel is simply selected, it isalso possible to determine whether or not there is a PID for the ATRACdata and to perform authentication when there is a PID for the ATRACdata.

Furthermore, for example, the present invention can also be applied to asystem for downloading a piece of music streamed by a ground-wavebroadcast, a system for downloading a piece of music streamed by a cablebroadcast, and a system for downloading a piece of music via theInternet.

As has been described up to this point, according to the datatransmission apparatus of the present invention and the datatransmission method of the present invention, a plurality of types oftransmission data are created, and when specific data requiring, in thetransmission destination, an authentication process for confirming thevalidity of the apparatus of the data transfer destination, is containedin this transmission data, determination data used for determining thatthe specific data is contained is created, and the created data istransmitted. This yields the advantage that the protection of dataagainst illicit transfer with respect to the specific data can beensured.

Furthermore, according to the data receiving apparatus of the presentinvention and the data receiving method of the present invention, aplurality of types of transmission data are received, and when specificdata requiring an authentication process for confirming the validity ofthe apparatus of the data transfer destination is contained in thistransmission data, determination data used for determining that thespecific data is contained is received, and a determination is made asto whether or not the specific data is contained in the transmissiondata in accordance with the received determination data. This yields theadvantage that the protection of data against illicit transfer withrespect to the specific data can be ensured.

Furthermore, according to the data transmission and reception system ofthe present invention and the data transmission and reception method ofthe present invention, a plurality of types of transmission data iscreated, and when specific data requiring, in the transmissiondestination, an authentication process for confirming the validity ofthe apparatus of the data transfer destination is contained in thistransmission data, determination data used for determining that thespecific data is contained is created, the created data is transmitted,the transmitted data is received, and a determination is made as towhether or not the specific data is contained in the transmission datain accordance with the determination data contained in the receiveddata. This yields the advantage that the protection of data againstillicit transfer with respect to the specific data can be ensured.

Many different embodiments of the present invention may be constructedwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention. Itshould be understood that the present invention is not limited to thespecific embodiment described in this specification. To the contrary,the present invention is intended to cover various modifications andequivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of theinvention as hereafter claimed. The scope of the following claims is tobe accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all suchmodifications, equivalent structures and functions.

1. A receiver apparatus, comprising: a receiver for receiving a digitalsignal including a plurality of content programs, record jacket imagedata associated with at least some of the plurality of content programs,and text data of titles associated with at least some of the pluralityof content programs; an external digital data interface operable toconnect to an external storage device for enabling communication withthe external storage device; a display for displaying the record jacketimage data and the title text data associated with at least one selecteddownloadable content program to a user; means for obtaining the at leastone selected downloadable content program when the displayed recordjacket image data or the title text data is selected; authenticationjudgment means for judging, based on a transfer request by a user,whether authentication can be established between the receiver apparatusand the external storage device before transferring the obtained contentprogram and the record jacket image data associated therewith from thereceiver apparatus to the external storage device via the externaldigital data interface; and transferring means for transferring theobtained content program and the associated record jacket image data tothe external storage device if the authentication is established;wherein the transfer request by the user is made based upon at least oneof the displayed record jacket image data and the title text data. 2.The receiver apparatus of claim 1, wherein the transferring meanstransfers the obtained content program to a first data area of theexternal storage device and transfers the record jacket image data to asecond data area of the external storage device.
 3. The receiverapparatus of claim 1, wherein the record jacket image data and the titletext data comprise accompanying information received by the receiver aspart of the digital signal.
 4. The receiver apparatus of claim 3,wherein the accompanying information further includes lyrics data andexplanation data.
 5. The receiver apparatus of claim 1, wherein theauthentication judgment means judges whether the authentication can beestablished when specific data about the authentication is included inthe obtained content program.